Power Integrations announced that its BridgeSwitch integrated half-bridge (IHB) motor-driver IC family has been expanded and now supports applications requiring up to 400 W. BridgeSwitch ICs feature high- and low-side advanced FREDFETs (Fast Recovery Diode Field Effect Transistors) with integrated lossless current sensing, resulting in inverter efficiency of up to 99.2% in brushless DC (BLDC) motor-drive applications. This industry-leading efficiency performance along with the distributed thermal footprint provided by the IHB driver eliminates the need for a heatsink, reducing both system cost and weight.

The new 400 W BRD1167 and BRD1267 BridgeSwitch ICs deliver up to 1.33 A RMS, 11.5 A DC output peak current. Like the rest of the BridgeSwitch family, they are self-powered and available in the same compact InSOP-24C surface-mount package. These devices can drive single- or multi-phase high-voltage, synchronous or asynchronous motors, and support all popular MCU and motor control algorithms. All BridgeSwitch ICs feature cycle-by-cycle hardware–based overcurrent, over/under-voltage and over-temperature protection features, which eliminate the software component from many protection functions. This simplifies IEC 60335 and 60730 certification, saving time and cost.

Like other BridgeSwitch family ICs, the new, uprated BRD1167 and BRD1267 devices also feature built-in device protection and system monitoring and a robust single-wire preventive maintenance interface which enables communication between the motor microcontroller and up to three BridgeSwitch devices. Each BridgeSwitch device may be configured with different high- and low-side current limits, eliminating role of the microcontroller and external circuitry in protecting the system from open or shorted motor windings.

Samples of BRD1167 & BRD1267 BridgeSwitch ICs will be available in May 2020 and are priced starting at $1.72 in 10,000-piece quantities.